Fodor's may use your e-mail address to send you relevant information on site updates, account changes, and offers. For more information about your privacy and protection, please review our full Privacy Policy.

America’s Top Fall Harvest Festivals

Sun Valley Harvest Festival

Where: Sun Valley, ID

When: September 19-22, 2013

Otherwise known as “Foodie Heaven,” the Sun Valley Harvest Festival offers the best of Sun Valley food and wine. The festival features demonstrations from celebrated chefs, a marketplace with products from regional farmers, tasting sessions with seasonal, local food. Visitors can also participate in the festival’s “Restaurant Walk,” which showcases local restaurants, wines and regional fare.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Nebraska City AppleJack Festival

Nebraska City AppleJack Festival

Where: Nebraska City, NE

When: September 20-22, 2013

Traditionally held the third weekend of September, the Nebraska City AppleJack Festival celebrates the city’s apple harvest. Visitors can pick their own apples at local orchards, sample apple treats, or stop by the AppleJam Carnival for rides, games, face painting and food. The festival also features a parade with over 30 marching bands, arts and crafts exhibits and a pie-baking contest.

Sonoma Harvest Fair

Every October, visitors flock to the heart of California wine country to visit the Sonoma Harvest Fair. The festival features three days of wine tasting from more than 150 local wineries, artisanal products and delicious food pairings. Don’t miss the World Championship Grape Stomp, where teams go head-to-head to produce record numbers of juice.

Photo Credit: PeJo/Shutterstock

Bayfield Apple Festival

Where: Bayfield, WI

When: October 4-6, 2013

For small town atmosphere with a spirited presence, visit the Bayfield Apple Festival in Bayfield, Wisconsin. The festival features over 60 orchard and food booths offering Bayfield apples and apple-inspired delicacies, and also showcases some of the area’s finest art. Visitors can drive five minutes outside of town to tour 14 local orchards and pick their own apples and pumpkins.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Grandon Harris

Stone Barns Harvest Fest

Where: Pocantico Hills, NY

When: October 5, 2013

Less than an hour away from New York City is Stone Barns Harvest Fest. The festival, held on Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture, features a farmer’s market with local, seasonal fare, hayrides, live music and a square dance. The festival is also a fundraiser for Stone Barns Center, and all proceeds support the Center’s mission of improving American agriculture and nutrition.

Photo Credit: : Courtesy of El Rancho de las Golondrinas

Harvest Festival

Help local villagers bring in the fall harvest at Santa Fe’s annual Harvest Festival. Visitors can participate in every aspect of the harvest, from grape stomping and tortilla making, to bread baking and stringing chile ristras. By the end of the festival, you’ll feel like you’re living on the early New Mexican frontier.

Photo Credit: Irina Yun/Shutterstock

National Apple Harvest Festival

Where: Arendtsville, PA

When: October 5-6 and 12-13, 2013

History buffs will enjoy the National Apple Harvest Festival, held the first two weekends of October. The festival, which is located in the heart of Pennsylvania Apple country, features more than 300 arts and crafts vendors, live entertainment, hayrides and apple bobbing contests. Visitors can also enjoy live demonstrations, including Native American dancing, tractor square dancing and chainsaw carvings.

Photo Credit: Lijuan Guo/Shutterstock

Cranberry Harvest Celebration

Where: Wareham, MA

When: October 12-13, 2013

Cranberry growers from throughout Cape Cod and southeastern Massachusetts gather each year for the Cranberry Harvest Celebration in Wareham. Growers share their crop with the public, and the festival offers everything from juried crafters and cooking demonstrations to musical performances and children’s rides. The best part? Visitors can buy fresh cranberries and freeze them to use while making their Thanksgiving feast.

Photo Credit: (c) Leesniderphotoimages | Dreamstime.com

Reading Terminal Market Harvest Festival

Celebrate the fall harvest in the middle of the city at the Reading Terminal Market Harvest Festival. Streets close down and the market becomes an urban farm, complete with authentic hayrides, hot apple cider and a sidewalk barbeque. Visitors can browse locally grown harvest fruits and vegetables, and enjoy live bluegrass music. End the day with handmade chocolate, caramel or candy-dipped apples.

Photo Credit: KennStilger47/Shutterstock

Hood River County Harvest Fest

Overlooking the Columbia River, the Hood River County Harvest Fest provides visitors with a taste of Hood River Valley bounty. The festival features a wide variety of fresh, local produce, and also includes arts and crafts, wine and beer tastings, and locally prepared food products. Visitors can find everything from Anjou pears and heirloom apples to homemade jams and chocolate covered cherries. All-day music, evening entertainment and a kids’ zone make the festival fun for the whole family.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Peter Guttman

Keene Pumpkin Festival

Walk through towers of pumpkins and streets lined with jack-o’-lanterns at the Keene Pumpkin Festival. Held two weekends before Halloweeen, the festival features pumpkin-themed events including a pumpkin mile run race, jack-o’-lantern carvings and pumpkin bowling. Visit the Food & Craft Court to try pumpkin-inspired foods, and browse over three-dozen artisans’ crafts and paintings.

Photo Credit: (c) Peanutroaster | Dreamstime.com

North Carolina Pecan Harvest Festival

Where: Whiteville, NC

When: October 31-November 2

For a unique taste of the fall harvest, visit the North Carolina Pecan Harvest Festival in Whiteville. The county is one of the top pecan producers in North Carolina, and celebrates the nut harvest at its annual fall festival. The festival features a pecan parade, 5k run, pecan cooking contest and pecan queen coronation. Visitors can also browse arts and crafts displays, and listen to music from rhythm and blues bands.

Photo Credit: allylondon/Shutterstock

Maine Harvest Festival

Sample the best of Maine’s food and produce at the Maine Harvest Festival in Bangor. The festival includes live cooking demonstrations, wine and beer tastings, and a variety of local vendors. Visitors can purchase holiday gifts and sample local specialties like whoopie pies and smoked Atlantic salmon. Guests can also participate in the Maine Alpaca Association’s “Alpaca 101” seminar, and learn more about the state’s growing alpaca fiber industry.

Fodor's may use your e-mail address to send you relevant information on site updates, account changes, and offers. For more information about your privacy and protection, please review our full Privacy Policy.